Sunday, February 10, 2008

Orange Alert's Music Minute

The one area that I have been trying to gain a better knowledge of and I have found it challenging, mainly because I do not have the ability to attend shows on a regular basis, is to tap into the wealth of music here is Chicago. However, I have a feeling that is all about to change. Today I bring you the music of The Interiors. Their sound ranges from straightforward pop to fast-paced and gritty swinging numbers. Never pinned-down, they reference everything from the Pixies to Elvis to traditional African music. If it sounds like an interesting blend, I would agree, but the remarkable thing is the blend is seamless. The Interiors have a sound all their own and this spring, as they release their new album on 54-40 or Flight Records, the world will fall in love with it.

TICKLEY FEATHER, the self-titled debut by Philadelphia's Annie Sachs, is a collection of late night path-finding sounds, gingerly home recorded using budget electronics. Selected from the past four years, these songs are washed in effects and demonstrate a barbaric yet meticulous instrumentation, along with a paradoxically, otherworldly and natural vocal style. The resulting sounds tell a secret that feels serendipitous. The album also features a special guest: her 4-year-old son Aiden It will see the light of day via the Animal Collective's Paw Tracks label on April 29, 2008.

Chicago's dynamic duo, Yea Big & Kid Static have decided to follow-up their incredible debut album with a highly limited edition three-inch CD version of the track “Eatchyo Samwich". The CD comes complete with an outstanding sandwich-shaped insert (white, wheat or rye). There were only 100 produced so get your sandwich today!

The Botticellis have an obsession with pop music, melodic songwriting and the cinematic sounds of yesteryear, but they’re not lost in some oldies Neverland. On Old Home Movies, out 5/13 on the Bay area label Antenna Farm, the quintet gives us ten luminous snapshots of sun-bleached memories. The vision is uniquely Californian, and while their music basks in the warmth of the Sunshine State personified by The Beach Boys, it’s also steeped in the shadows and queasy uncertainty of Raymond Chandler. With a name taken from a surfing term, it is no wonder that their sound should be in the same vein.

Old Home Movies is polished, orchestral, and surprisingly subtle, with a remarkably full and mature sound for such a young band. The classic, larger than life production is full of delicate flourishes; The Botticellis’ stylized sound echoes the production aesthetic of some of the great 70s pop records from Big Star, Chris Bell, and George Harrison. The band produced the album with the help of Anton Patzner (Bright Eyes) who played violin on “Who Are You Now,” Matt Cunitz, whose museum of vintage keyboards colors the music and Jason Quever (Papercuts), who played drums on “Flashlight” and helped capture the band’s balmy sound on analogue tape.

In the earlier 90's David Yow was as big as they in Chicago. If it wasn't that Corgan guy, Yow would have been the biggest. However, their type of Noise Rock never really translated to bigger audiences. Perhaps it was the quality of the vocals on their recordings. They always sound distant and muffled. Yet, I don't think the big stage was really the point or the goal of Jesus Lizard. In 1994, the recorded their last album for Touch & Go Records before signing to Capitol Records, and it was one of their finest.

Fly On The Wall (mp3)/Mistletoe/Countless Backs of Sad Losers/Queen For A Day/The Associate/Destroy Before Reading (mp3)/Low Rider/50 Cents/American BB/Horse/Din/Elegy/The Best Parts

Picture of the Week

Songs of the Week

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My Week in Pictures

We talk with local artist Kari Karus about her work and her involvment with Water Street Studio.

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